Data storage disks, and in particular optical data storage disks, are widely used for a number of purposes, such as storage of pre-recorded or mastered information. As used herein, “mastered” information refers to information in which content is incorporated (embossed) onto the disk during the manufacture of the disk, typically in the form of a pattern of pits and planar regions. The information may include, for example, music recordings, movies, books, and other media. One common type of optical disk is a Compact Disk (CD), which pre-stores music recordings and allows the music to be played back by the consumer or user. Another common type of optical disk is a Digital Video Disk or Digital Versatile Disk (DVD), which pre-stores and plays back audio/visual media such as movies. Optical disks that contain mastered information are also sometimes referred to as read-only disks, indicating the ability to read or access the information, but not the ability to write information to the disk.
Other types of optical disks allow the user to write or store information onto the disk. These types of disks are sometimes referred to as write-once or read/write disks, which allow the user to both write information to and read information from the disk. Information can be written, for example, by downloading data via computer networks such as the Internet onto data storage disks. The downloaded data may include the same type of information as pre-recorded data, i.e., movies, music recordings, books, and other media.
In the prior art, information is typically stored on the mastered or read-only optical disk in the form of a sequential pattern of pits on the disk surface, indicating binary information. The detection of these pits is based on the principle of optical contrast detection. For example, the light from the laser is reflected off the pit and the planar region between the pits. The depth of the pits is such that constructive or destructive effects occur, creating an optical contrast between the pits and planar regions. Photodetectors at the optical head sense that optical difference and decode the information as a binary information transition, e.g., from 1 to 0 or from 0 to 1.
In read/write disks, the information is stored in the form of marks, usually in the grooves of the disk. Such marks can typically be a change in the nature of the material, such as in the structure of the material. Storing information or writing data onto the disk requires energy, typically in the form of laser light, to form the physical marks in the material. Typically, the marks are written on the groove.
The pits and grooves are formed on the disk using a father stamper, which has features (i.e., bumps and lands) that are mirror images or opposite polarity of the pits and grooves. Father stampers are formed, beginning with a glass master disk. Photoresist is deposited on the glass master disk. After being coated with photoresist, the master is placed on an air-bearing spindle. A master bench laser exposes selected portions of the photoresist to create the desired pattern of pits and/or grooves. After the photoresist is exposed and developed, which washes away the exposed resist to leave gaps and grooves, the master disk is plated with nickel in a process known as electroforming. The nickel mold, known as the father stamper, is separated from the photoresist and master disk. The father stamper has features that are mirror images of the features cut by the laser. Using polycarbonate, for example, in an injection molding process creates the disk with pits and recessed-grooves as originally cut by the laser.
The grooves are typically formed in a wobble that generates a sinusoidal signal used to control the rotational speed of the disk and to generate a clock signal. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,972,410 and 5,682,365 to Carasso et al. describes disks with wobbles and are incorporated by reference in their entirety. The grooves may also contain high-frequency wobble marks within the wobble which can be used to indicate other information, such as the addresses of the physical sectors. Details are disclosed in commonly-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/542,681, entitled “Structure and Method for Storing Data on Optical Discs”, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety. In reading the disk, features cut by the original mastering laser are tracked. Thus, because disks created using a father stamper process have originally-cut features along the grooves, tracking is on the wobbled grooves, and information is written on the grooves.
Reading or playing back the information is typically achieved by the optical reader transmitting a light beam onto the information layer and detecting the characteristics of the reflected light. In the case of what are called front or first surface disks, the information surface is the first surface that the read or write laser impinges. To the contrary, in second surface disks, the information surface is the second surface that the read or write laser impinges, the first surface being the surface of the substrate. The stored information is read by detecting the absence or presence of the marks in the grooves of the coating layer, such as by an optical head or reader. This then allows the stored information to be played back. The detection principle for recorded information in such disks is often the change in the refractive indices of the coating layer. Another principle in such disks is the change in the polarization axis of the light.
Reading or playing back the information in second surface disks is typically achieved by the optical reader transmitting a light beam through the substrate of the disk and onto the information layer (i.e., the groove and pits) and reflecting the light beam back through the substrate. The substrate is typically a clear plastic material on which the information layer is formed. Because the light is incident on two surfaces (the substrate surface and the information surface), these type of disks can be referred to as second-surface or substrate-incident disks or media.
The relatively thick and transparent substrate of second-surface optical media makes read-only or read/write operations relatively insensitive to dust particles, scratches and the like since they can be located more than approximately 500 wavelengths from the information layer and hence are defocused. On the other hand, the second-surface optical medium can be relatively sensitive to various opto-mechanical variations. For example, common opto-mechanical variations include tilt of the substrate relative to the optical axis, substrate thickness variations, and/or substrate birefringence.
These variations give rise to optical aberrations which degrade system performance arising from the presence of the thick transparent layer and which can, at least theoretically, be partially compensated for by using a suitable optical path design. Such an optical path typically can only provide compensation for a single, pre-defined thickness of the layer. Because there are likely to be variations in the thickness or other properties of the transparent layer, such compensation may be less than desired at some locations of the medium.
Another drawback associated with second-surface optical media is that the optical requirements of such media are substantially inconsistent with the miniaturization of the disk drive and optical components for such media. As will be appreciated, a longer working distance (distance between the objective lens and the information content portions) is required for an optical system that will read information from or write information onto second-surface media. This is due to the relatively thick transparent layer through which the radiation must pass to access the recording layer. To provide the longer working distance, larger optical components (e.g., objective lenses) are required.
Accordingly, an optical disk is desired that overcomes the disadvantages discussed above with conventional optical disks.